Patrick Muldoon’s ex-girlfriend Denise Richards has been left “devastated” and “inconsolable” over his unexpected death from a heart attack.
The Days of Our Lives actor died aged 57 at the Beverly Hills home he shared with his partner of two years, Miriam Rothbart.
Richards, who met Melrose Place star Muldoon at an acting class when she was 19 and he was 21, dated him on and off throughout the 1990s.
They stayed “in constant contact” in the decades that followed, walking the red carpet at the 2026 Saturn Awards last month and even starring in an upcoming film together.
“She's devastated. Really, really sad. I'd even call her inconsolable. She can't stop crying,” a source close to the star, 55, told the Mail.
“Patrick is the ex that she had the best relationship with. There was a ton of respect on both sides.”
The insider added: “It was so amicable that they were better friends than lovers and they remained in constant contact. She was his biggest supporter, he was hers.”
The pair starred alongside each other in the 1997 film Starship Troopers and will share the screen once again in the action-thriller Dirty Hands, which will be released on Friday.
Richards’ daughter Lola Sheen - whom she shares with ex-husband Charlie Sheen - said she “begged” her mother to reconcile with Muldoon.
Sharing a tribute to the actor, she wrote: “I thought you were the one that was supposed be in our lives forever. when i think of my childhood i think of you pat, and it’s gonna be so weird to go on without you in our lives.
“You were such a huge part of our family and life will never feel the same, but that’s just because of how much you impacted us. thank you for showing everyone around you how to be alive.”
The 20-year-old went on: “I will really miss hearing my mom laugh on the phone with you. your voice always brightened my day and i’m gonna miss hearing it but i know my mom will more, but we will never stop talking about you.
“Thank you for being the one to make her laugh and forget about all she’s going through. that was a gift you had. the bond you two had was something so special, that no one can touch.”
“When i think of my mom i think of you. you guys came as a package and i’m so thankful i got to know you and witness a friendship so pure and special in front of my eyes.”
Muldoon was found unconscious on his bathroom floor by his partner after going to take a shower, his sister Shanna revealed.
Paramedics rushed to their home and tried to revive the actor but failed in their efforts.
Muldoon found fame playing Austin Reed on the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives from 1992 to 1995.
He reprised the role on the soap from 2011 to 2012.
His other roles included the recurring character Jeffrey Hunter in the teen television series Saved by the Bell in 1991 and the villain Richard Hart in the soap opera Melrose Place from 1995 to 1996.
Aside from acting, he worked as a producer on films like The Tribes of Palos Verdes, Arkansas, Marlowe, The Card Counter, The Dreadful and Riff Raff through his company, Storyboard Productions.
He was set to produce a film with Chris Hemsworth and Taron Egerton titled Kockroach.
He is survived by his partner Rothbart, parents Deanna and Patrick Muldoon, Sr, sister and brother-in-law Shana and Ahmet Zappa, niece Halo and nephew Arrow Zappa.
